


Fourth of July

by CthulhusBabe



Series: The Macon Diaries [2]
Category: The Walking Dead (Comics), The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No Zombie Apocalypse, Alternate Universe - No Zombies, Baby Judith, Established Relationship, F/M, Fourth of July, Genderfluid Character, Judith grimes - Freeform, M/M, Negan is Negan, One-Eyed Carl Grimes, Relationship(s), and gleggie, baby hershel, carl is 18, carl is of age, carls parents are supportive of him, early stages of relationship, for richonne, genderfluid carl grimes, hershel rhee - Freeform, meth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-03
Packaged: 2018-11-23 02:14:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11393250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CthulhusBabe/pseuds/CthulhusBabe
Summary: Its the fourth of July, and this year Carl is allowed to go to the family party.





	Fourth of July

**Author's Note:**

> This is one of those one-shots that's connected to a bigger universe in my AU for the walking dead. This takes place the same year as the father's day fic. So Rick and Michonne are originally from Cynthiana, Kentucky and after the death of his wife and beginning to date Michonne, they moved the family to Macon, GA. According to a WD map I found, Hershel's farm is around Shoal Creek area, so that's what I've gone for in this universe. 
> 
> I liked the idea of everyone living in gated communities- so Alexandria is one, Hilltop is another for the sake of the story these places are located in Macon. 
> 
> Carl is in the 12th Grade, or rather ending the 12th Grade and getting ready to leave for University. He identifies as genderfluid in this series, but his pronouns are still he/him. 
> 
> I am a British person, so anything I write is inferred from Maps I've found, or vlogs I found on YouTube that were about the fourth of July.

Michonne peered out the front door, spying her partner lounging in a deck chair, beer on the table beside him and a cigarette dangling from his lips. 

“Those things will kill you,” Michonne commented, coming outside to sit beside Rick. 

Rick chuckled, flicking ash into the ashtray next to him, “They haven’t ended me yet. Where are the kids?” 

“Carl’s taken Judith to the park.”

Rick nodded, and cast his gaze over his new neighbourhood. Rick hadn’t been living here for very long, originally from Cynthiana, Kentucky; Rick had decided to pick up and leave after the death of his wife- Lori. Lori had been the love of his life, they had married after high school, and Lori had given birth to a beautiful son, his little Carl. It started to go wrong after that. Not because of Carl, it had never been Carl’s fault and Rick was always quick to reassure him of this, but there was no love between Lori or Rick. Not anymore. It went further downhill after Rick was put into a coma. Shot on duty, Rick was out cold in the world for three months. Apparently, all it took was three months for Lori to move on and shack up with his best friend and partner, Shane Walsh. When Rick awoke from his coma, Lori was quick to jump back into bed with him. It was a messy situation and it resulted in Lori falling pregnant, and whilst Rick didn’t voice his concerns to Lori, he knew deep down that the baby she was carrying was Shane’s. Lori had died in childbirth. Rick hadn’t been there, but he found himself lying awake at night wishing he was. Yes, what Lori did was wrong, yes, she was a problematic mother, but she still deserved the right to have her husband by her side. Rick had named the baby Judith, after Lori’s grandmother. When Judith turned one, and Carl lost his eye in a school fight, Rick was quick to pack his bags and head on out. He picked up the kids and moved down to Macon. Macon was a nice area, with good high schools for Carl to attend in his last year, and well established and recommended kinder-garden for Judith to go to in order to get the best start in life. Yes. Rick had been living in Macon for three months, and he was loving it. 

“It’s the fourth of July in two days,” Michonne remarked casually, “Maybe we should get everyone together? Get the guys over from the other estates- The Kingdom, Hilltop. Maybe even invite that new guy? The one you don’t want Judith and Carl around.” 

“Negan?” Rick suggested taking a sip of his beer, “I don’t think that’s a good idea, he’s already made an enemy out of Abraham after stealing his wheelie bin.”  
Michonne chuckled, “Rick, it will be good to unite everyone. You know everyone loves a Grimes party.” 

“Who will look after the kids?” 

Michonne shrugged, “Carl won’t be happy if we don’t let him come this year, you know what he’s like, he likes having the family together. We could ask if Carol’s kid could look after Judith?” 

Rick nodded, “I’ll send Carol a text, let her know we’ll pay Sophia for the trouble, see if anyone else’s kids want to hang out at Carol’s?” 

Rick reached into his pocket for his cell, _‘Hey Carol, 4th of July party at mine. You are Tyreese are invited. How would Sophia feel about babysitting Judith for the night? Will pay her of course. Maybe have some of the other kids over for pizza?’_

Rick turned to Michonne, “If we’re throwing a fourth of July party, I’m not running the BBQ. Last time that happened, the folks back home got food poisoning.” 

Michonne smiled, “I’ll send Abraham a text and ask if him and Daryl would mind manning the BBQ this year because my partner would make everyone ill.” 

Rick laughed, flipping open his cell to read the reply, “Off you go then, go tell the others about my inability to cook and how little of a man I am.” 

He glanced at his phone:

From Carol: _‘Rick, party at yours sounds wonderful, can’t wait! Sophia would love to look after Judith, will Carl be popping over?’_

_‘Carl wanted to try his hand at running with the ‘dults this year. Maybe ask Andrea and Dale if their boys want to spend the evening with Sophia, Enid too?’_

From Carol: _‘Sounds great! [thumbs up emoji] Want me to bring anything?’_

_‘Can’t think of anything rn, will txt you later Carol’_

 

-Page Break- 

 

When Carl arrived home with Judith, lunch was already set on the table. 

“Good time at the park?” Rick questioned, shoving half a sandwich in his mouth. 

Carl nodded, gulping down his soda, “Judy made a few friends. It was all good.” 

Rick nodded, “So,” he began, “How would you feel about coming to the fourth of July party we’re hosting?” 

Carl was silent for a minute, “Wait, you mean it? I’m not babysitting Judith this year? I can come?” 

Rick nodded, “You have to promise to help out though, and you need to run round the invites Michonne is drawing up.” 

“Can’t you just send a mass text?” 

Rick shook his head, “Nah, it’s a lot more personal this way Carl.” 

Carl grumbled, but agreed, folding a sandwich into his mouth, 

“Can Michonne and I go shopping for something nice to wear?” 

Rick smiled, “Sure, you and Michonne can go shopping for the rest of the stuff and pick something nice to wear as well. But, only after you’ve gone to deliver these invites.” 

Carl stood up, snatching the bundle of envelopes off the table, 

“Don’t forget!” Rick called as Carl shot out the door, “Knock on the door and hand it to them if you can. If not just post it through.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Carl snarked. His Dad wouldn’t know if he didn’t knock on the door, and if Rick asked any of them, Carl could feign innocence and claim they must have been out when he knocked. He glanced at the envelopes, some of them going as far to the houses over in the Hilltop gated community. Carl sighed and cursed the name of Dixon. Who the fuck decided to live that far out? Still, at least he didn’t have to cycle all the way to Shoal Creek where the Greene’s farm was. That was a job for his Dad to do. 

First, he went to Carol’s house, knocking on the door purely so he could see his friend Sophia,

“Oh, hey Carl!” Sophia greeted after opening the front door, “What’s going on?” 

Carl wordlessly handed her the envelope with Michonne’s beautiful calligraphy, 

“Oh, for the party you’re Dad’s holding? Tell your Dad thanks for letting me look after Judith!” 

“Sure, thing Soph, listen I gotta run,” he held up the rest of the invites, “Plenty more people to see, make sure your mom and Tyreese get that!” 

He turned on heel and made his way down the street, “I’ll call you later!” he called over his shoulder. His next stop was the trio, so called because they never really hung out with anyone else in the community. Eugene was a teacher over at Carl’s high school, Abraham was a personal trainer, and Carl wasn’t too sure what Rosita did or how she fit in. Still, an invitation was an invitation and they were invited. He knocked on the door, could hear voices, but no one came to the door. Huffing, Carl shoved the envelope through the  
letterbox. 

He continued on, out of Alexandria, and towards the Hilltop Community. He went over the envelopes to see who was left- the Dixons (plus Beth Greene), Eric and Aaron, Andrea and Dale, Bob and Sasha, and someone named Negan? Carl shrugged, he had never seen Negan, let alone meet him, so he supposed there was a first time for everything. He didn’t have to worry about Maggie and Glenn, nor the Greenes as Carl knew his father would go and visit them personally, if only to take Judith to see baby Hershel.  
Eventually, Carl was left with one envelope to deliver. Grateful that his torture would soon be over, Carl cycled back to Alexandria. Dropping the bike on the curve of the lawn, he made his way to the porch. Parked on the driveway was a gorgeous 1967 Chevvy Impala, Carl likened it to the one on that hit TV show ‘Supernatural’, causing him to snort. Before Carl could knock on the door, he spotted a man leaning against the doorway, 

“You like Lucille huh?” 

Carl shrugged, ‘who the hell names their car?’ “Seems like a pretty sweet ride,” he told the man, “Negan right?” 

The man in leather nodded, “Fuck yeah I am, who are you?” 

“Carl Grimes.” 

“Carl fucking Grimes huh? Rick’s boy?” 

Carl nodded, and handed the invitation over to Negan, “My Dad’s throwing a fourth of July party, you’re invited. He told me to tell you to not start any fights, or he’ll arrest you.”  
Negan chuckled, “I promise I won’t start a fight, all fucking right? Especially if you’re there princess.” He winked and Carl scoffed. What a dick. An attractive dick, but nonetheless a dick.

Carl arrived back and after telling his Dad that he had delivered the letters, promptly waiting for Michonne by the car. Carl had no idea what he wanted to wear, maybe a nice skirt and shirt combo? Or maybe a nice shirt and a new pair of jeans. He wasn’t sure, he’d ask Michonne for help. In the end, he had decided on a black and red floral dress and a denim waistcoat. He had tried it on to show Michonne and she was ecstatic with the choice. For herself she picked out a short yellow dress with a slit in the front. Carl smiled. He knew his Dad would love Michonne’s outfit. He loved his parents for the one reason that they accepted him- accepted his gender identity, accepted his sexuality. He wished more were like his parents. 

-Page Break- 

Fourth of July soon rolled around, and Carl and Judith were in the kitchen rolling out cookies. It didn’t matter that Judith wouldn’t be at the party, Rick always liked to involve the children. Rick and Michonne were in the yard putting up decorations that they knew would come down once the drinks were out. The BBQ was already out, sparkling clean and ready to be cooked on. Half three, Michonne ran Judith over to Carol’s house, and Carl wrapped the pre-prepared food up under cellophane. He headed upstairs towards his room and pulled off his printed shirt, replacing it with his new dress. He tugged off his jeans, and using his feet, kicked it towards the wash basket, cheering when the jeans went flying in. He pulled the dress down so it rested just above his thighs before looking at himself in the mirror. He sighed. ‘It would definitely look more appealing if he had both eyes’, he thought to himself. Still, what’s done was done, and he had to deal with the cards the fates had dealt him. He glanced down at his table, where his makeup was hidden in a small bag. Would it be too much if he wore makeup? He’d just gotten used to wearing clothes typically considered female, and he’d only worn makeup in the house around Judy, never around other people. Would it be too much too soon? ‘No’, he told himself confidently, giving himself a pep talk in the mirror, ‘This is my home, I can wear what I want.’  
He reached for the bag, pulling out a small jar of concealer, a black eyeliner felt tip and a nude lipstick. He wouldn’t go all out, not just yet. After smudging his eyeliner countless times -having one eye and trying to draw a line on that one eye was surprisingly difficult- Carl stared at himself in the mirror. It looked like him, but it didn’t, and Carl found himself deciding to wear makeup more often. He pulled on his converse and headed downstairs where he found Michonne and Rick cuddled on the couch and giggling, getting some last minute alone time before guests started arriving. 

“Ugh. Please keep the affection to a minimum. I don’t think I can take the embarrassment.” 

Rick laughed, kissing Michonne on the temple before racing towards Carl. He grabbed a hold of his son’s hands and twirled him around.  
“Well would you look at you! Don’t you look pretty!” 

Carl smiled, his cheeks turning pink, “Do you think? It’s not too much?” 

Rick shook his head, “You look wonderful.” 

-Page Break- 

The party was in full swing. The radio was blaring out the popular tunes of that summer. Abraham and Daryl were stood by the BBQ; Michonne was talking to Carol, Maggie and Andrea, the women laughing and dancing; Rick, Glenn, Tyreese, and Bob were chatting among themselves; Hershel and Dale were sat in the shade, Hershel was showing Dale photos of his grandson; Beth and Merle were cuddled up to one-and-other on the outdoor sofas, ignoring the disapproving looks they were getting from their displays of public affection. There were plenty of other people at the party, though Carl wasn’t sure of their names, maybe he should make an effort to learn them?

Jesus was also there (he had turned up last minute as a plus one with Daryl) and was walking between groups, chatting happily to everyone, a soda clutched in his hand.  
Jesus and Carl were the only ones not drinking alcohol. ‘Happy Fourth of July’ Carl thought to himself, he had thought the party would be more entertaining than this, he thought his Dad would let him drink, he thought more gossip would be spread among the group; but it was mostly everyone catching up and discussing things wrong with the gated communities. ‘Perhaps’, Carl thought to himself, ‘the excitement would pick up once people had drunk more, surely?’ 

From where Carl was stood, observing his friends and family, he could hear the shrill ring of the doorbell. Looking over to where his Dad still sat in conversation, Carl rolled his eye and made a beeline for the front door. 

“Well fuck me, don’t you look beautiful.” 

It was Negan at the door, two hours late (not that Carl was counting, absolutely not. He totally was not tracking the time to see when his attractive neighbour turned up. No way. He definitely did not think his new neighbour was good looking). 

“Hello Negan.” 

“Well fucking hell kid, I had no idea you looked this fucking good in a dress! Jesus fucking Christ.” 

Pink tinged Carl’s cheeks, no one had really mentioned what he was wearing, or the makeup. He had seen a few people staring, far too long to be a glance of appreciation, and heard people mutter under their breath, but Carl was used to ignoring people. 

“Do you do this shit often?” Negan asked, “Dress like a pretty girl?” 

Carl scoffed and glared, “I’m not dressed as a girl. I’m dressed as me.” 

Negan nodded, a playful smirk tugging on his lips, “Okay sweetheart, fucking hell, I was just asking.” 

Carl stepped aside to let Negan step in. 

“Nice house,” he commented, heading straight for the kitchen where he used a cupboard handle to open a bottle of beer. He handed it out to Carl, 

“Want one?” 

Carl debated for a second, his hand reaching for the bottle, only to retract back to his sides. 

“I shouldn’t. My Dad would kill me.” 

Negan smirked, “Just a sip, man you’re Dad’s a fucking buzzkill.” 

He held the bottle out towards Carl, shaking it slightly. 

With a spark of bravery, or perhaps stupidity, Carl reached out for the bottle, raising it to his lips and taking a large sip. 

“This is no better than the wine my mom let me taste years ago.” 

Negan laughed, ruffling Carl’s backcombed hair. 

-Page Break- 

The food had been eaten, as well as the sweet treats Carl and Judith made earlier that day. Carl had stuck to himself mainly, keeping to the outskirts of the group in order to see if anything exciting or eventful would happen. Negan was waltzing around people, getting into their faces, guffawing loudly, going out of his way to antagonise Glenn and Abraham (what Negan had against those two individuals, Carl did not know). It was Abraham who threw the first punch, spurred on by something Negan had said about Rosita. It was all it took for Negan to throw himself at Abraham and proceed to beat the shit out of the man’s face. Carl watched in amused horror. This was the kind of thing he had been looking for at the party, interesting that it had been the attractive neighbour to ignite the flame. Rick and Merle had pulled the two men apart, pulling them as far away from one and other as they could manage. Carl had moved towards Merle, placing a hand on the older man’s bicep, 

“Let him go, I’ll sort him out.” 

Merle looked torn. Should he let the kid take the drunk? Would Beth be angry if he did let Carl take Negan? Would Beth be angry if Merle trudged home to drink some more. Merle’s tight grip on Negan laxed and he watched as the younger boy half dragged Negan into the kitchen. 

“Sit,” he ordered the older man. 

“Fuck,” Negan groaned, “I like it when you get all alpha on me.” 

 

Despite landing the most punches on Abraham, Negan was still pretty battle torn. Broken skin around the eye that would turn into a gnarly bruise by morning, and blood coating his tongue, teeth and lips. Negan sent a bloody smile at Carl. 

“You gonna be my pretty nurse? Gonna make sure I ain’t gonna fucking die?”

Carl sighed, reaching into one of the cabinets for the first-aid kit, “You’re lucky my Dad didn’t arrest you,” he told the older man, 

“I’d like to see him fucking try.” 

Scoffing, Carl ran some antiseptic wipes over Negan’s cuts. 

“I was hoping something like this would happen,” Carl told Negan quietly, “The party was so boring otherwise.” 

Negan laughed loudly, grimacing when a sharp pain echoed through his chest, “You’re fucked up kid, a little serial killer in the making. Wanting to see people hurt each other as a form of fucking entertainment.” 

Carl smiled, and turned his head back towards the party. He could hear loud cheers and screams. It seemed Dale and his Dad had let off the fireworks.  
Carl hoisted Negan to his feet, “Come on, fireworks time. Isn’t that supposed to be a highlight of fourth of July.” 

Negan let himself be led to the window, slinging an arm around Carl’s small shoulders. Together they watched the colours swirl in the sky, and rockets burst through the air, the loud bangs reverberating around the neighbourhood. 

“This is nice,” Carl commented, leaning into Negan’s embrace. 

“Sure as hell is kid,” the older man commented, pressing a kiss into Carl’s hair, “Sure as fuck is.”


End file.
